U.S. FCC Regulators propose Repeater Tax

In a move certain to cause controversy in the U.S. Amateur Radio community, the FCC has proposed a new Repeater Tax to free up radio spectrum.

The Dipole reached out to Jessica Rosenworcel, Chairwoman of the FCC Board of Directors, who confirmed the proposal before the board is to eliminate spectrum squatting by repeaters that have little to no use.  Rosenworcel told The Dipole, "It is thought that a tax on repeaters will eliminate as many as 90% of existing Amateur Radio repeater systems which have been underused for years, freeing up radio spectrum for newer Amateur Radio operators to use the allocations for newer modes of operation."  She went on to state, "If the spectrum is not used after this change then we may consider selling it off to industry.  We don't think of it so much as a tax than a license fee, however as the repeaters are already licensed, it would have to be a tax  by law."

Furious efforts are expected by the ARRL to oppose these changes. "We will lobby extremely hard to keep things exactly as they are, status quo, with cold repeaters and dead air." said ARRL President Rick Roderick when reached for comment. Roderick also said that, "if the United States employs this tax on repeaters then other nations like Canada are certain to follow."

Tax rates have not yet been determined and will not be until after the public consultation period has ended June 15, 2025, however an unnamed source has told The Dipole that suggested amounts could be in the range of $500 to $800 per year.

-reporting from the FCC, Washington D.C., Scott VA7SL
The DIPOLE - the World's finest Amateur Radio News Source, like a Dipole there are two sides to every story, we ignore those sides, digging deeper for unwanted lobes and parasitic reactions.

---